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CA Minimum Wage Increase to $16 effective January 1, 2024

Last Updated 8/7/2023

The California Department of Finance has now completed its annual review of the minimum wage rate as guided by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics figures.  Labor Code section 1182.12 mandates that the Department of Finance determine that economic conditions can support a statewide minimum wage increase and certify to the Governor and the Legislature that such conditions are met, which it has now done. Although the federal Bureau noted a Consumer Price Index increase of 6.16 percent, California law limits the minimum wage increase to 3.5 percent.  Thus, the state’s minimum wage for all employers will increase to $16.00 per hour, starting January 1, 2024.  The current minimum wage since the start of this year is $15.50 per hour.

A few additional items that employers may want to keep in mind when evaluating the new minimum wage rate:

  • Local minimum wage ordinances may direct an even higher minimum wage for workers within their boundaries.
  • In addition to the minimum wage increase, the new minimum salary which qualifies for the executive, administrative and professional employee exemption from the state’s minimum wage and overtime laws will rise to $66,650.
  • Keep an eye out for how California’s electorate chooses to vote in November 2024.  A proposition, Initiative 21-0043, which garnered enough signatures last year to get on the 2024 ballot, would raise the minimum wage to $18.00 per hour by January 2025 for large employers and January 2026 for smaller employers.

For any questions regarding the minimum wage or any other employment issue, please contact Rosasco Law Group, APC.  We are here to help make sure your workplace is proactive and compliant with all aspects of the law.

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